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Ad Agencies Use Slow,
Cautious Approach To Hiring In The 90s
By Donna Gordon Blankinship
The extravagant eighties have given way to the cautious nineties
in the advertising and marketing industry. An uncertain economy
is forcing Northwest ad agencies and in-house creative staffs
to keep a close eye on overhead and rein in hiring.
Instead of going into a hiring frenzy every time a new project
or account rolls in, creative directors are, in the words of
one agency president, "taking baby steps." They depend
heavily on freelancers, independent contractors and temporary
workers until the work load gets so heavy they must hire permanent
staff.
News of the resulting tough Northwest job market for creative
people has yet to reach California and the East Coast, resulting
in a tremendous talent glut in Washington and Oregon.
"This town is just so overstocked with graphic designers,"
says Kristin Knight, partner in HandyMAC-PC, a Seattle freelance
service placing designers and production people in the same
way temporary agencies provide secretarial help.
"Fifty percent of the people I interview have just moved
to town," Knight says. The company has about 300 active
names on its freelance list and works with both corporations
like Microsoft and Seafirst Bank and design and advertising
agencies. HandyMAC-PC represents a fraction of the freelance
creative people available.
When they move to Seattle and Portland, designers, art directors
and copywriters are turning to freelancing when they find out
ad agencies and in-house creative teams aren't hiring.
Lynn Franklin, office manager of Sorensen Roberts & Hansen,
says her agency regularly uses freelancers and independent contractors
for design work, paste-up, photography and media buying. The
Seattle agency's use of freelancers fluctuates according to
the workload but the permanent staff remains fairly stable.
Franklin says the agency's first choice is to use its own staff
to its full potential and then turn to outside help.
The Coates Agency in Portland takes a similar approach.
"We tend to run lean and would rather be overworked for
a short period of time as opposed to staffing up and then laying
people off," says Creative Director Tom Hering. The agency
staff has held steady at about 16 people for more than a year
and Hering says The Coates Agency has been able to maintain
a steady stream of business despite the uncertain economy.
Many Northwest agencies see their work fluctuate more and that
leads them to use more freelancers. Big accounts routinely pass
from one agency to the next as coporate marketing staffs change
and the economy fluctuates.
In Spokane, where the economy is growing, hiring practices are
slightly more progressive. Jack White, president of WhiteRunkle
Associates, says his agency is growing again, slowly but steadily.
The company closed its Seattle office four years ago and has
seen steady growth in Spokane since then. In 1992 the WhiteRunkle
staff grew from 14 to 18.
Hiring is a two-step process for WhiteRunkle. As the agency
attracts more work, they hire more freelancers. When freelance
billing grows to equal the work of a permanent, full-time staffer,
the company makes a permanent hire.
"It's cheaper, better and more productive to bring someone
on board," White says.
Although the economy is weaker in Seattle, some of the bigger
agencies like Cole & Weber take a similar two-step approach
to hiring. Dolly Chale, vice president/administration at Cole
& Weber, says they uses freelance production staff during
busy times, "when the agency is really cranking ad,"
but for most jobs they depend on permanent staff.
"We really don't hire too many freelance copywriters or
art directors unless we have a specific project we think they
would be especially good at," Chale adds.
Knight at HandyMAC-PC says her company has had a successful
first three years thanks to the Puget Sound economy.
"It's much cheaper in the long run for a company to have
the talent there just when they need them, not have to pay benefits
and not have to pay the time when they don't have much work,"
she says.
Some creative directors appreciate the added bonus of the wealth
of freelance talent in Seattle, Spokane and Portland.
Jim Fisher, who runs a freelance agency in Portland called The
Concepts Co., says mid-size companies with an in-house marketing
person but no creative staff can really benefit from the influx
of independent talent.
A former freelance writer himself, Fisher says he enjoys matching
freelance talent with companies. He represents 11 designers,
photographers, writers and illustrators and receives a commission
on each job he brings to them. He notes that he is not planning
to add to his core creative group for at least six months. After
the match is made, Fisher steps back and the client works directly
with the creative person or team.
"The client is not paying mark-up or overhead and they're
not paying for services they may or may not need," Fisher
says.
He also works as a headhunter for companies seeking employee
to do a specific job. Fisher brags that he has both helped and
hurt Portland ad agencies in his first few months in business.
He has helped them by finding good freelance people and he has
hurt them by taking business away. |
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